In continuing the series on the lives of my great-grandparents, I bring you the story of how in 1893 my Italian great-grandfather, Michele Lombardi, arrived in the United States at the age of 9 with his mother. The following is in his own words, from the “Rambling Episode” he wrote in 1969 about his life.

“We went by train from Isernia to Naples and from there embarked on a ship which took 28 days to reach New York. I remember that the tour conductor had us all tagged for identification and destination until we boarded the train which was to take us to Denver, Colorado, where my father was then living.